MCAT 2015 (Psychological, Social and Biological Foundations of Behavior)

One of the MCAT testing sections for the 2015 MCAT Exam will be on the psychological, social and biological foundations of behavior.

Dr. Shelly Marmion, from the UT Tyler’s Psychology Department, has reviewed the Kaplan Study Guide on this testing area and has produced the following information for students to use to select courses offered at UT Tyler that covers this content area.

Given the new importance of this area of the MCAT exam, Dr. Marmion has recommended that students consider taking more than a course or two to prepare for the exam. Below is a summary of content areas and the list of psychology courses offered at UT Tyler.

Chapter 6: Psychological, Social and Biological Foundations of Behavior

MCAT descriptions Corresponding Psychology % of this section of course exam Foundational Concept 6: factors influencing perceptions, thoughts and reactions to the 27% world 6A – Sensing the environment: sensory PSYC 3356 Sensation & Perception processing, vision, hearing, other senses, perception 6B – Making sense of the environment: attention, PSYC 4315 Cognitive Psychology cognition, consciousness, memory, language 6C Responding to the world: emotion, stress PSYC 1301 Introductory Psychology? Foundational Concept 7: factors influencing behavior and behavior change 33% 7A – Individual influences on behavior, biological PSYC 1301 Introductory Psychology bases of behavior, personality, psychological disorders, motivation, attitudes 7B – Social processes that influence human PSYC 3306 Social Psychology behavior: presence of others, group processes, culture, socialization 7C – Attitude and behavior change: PSYC 3325 Learning and habituation/dishabituation, associative learning, Conditioning observational learning, theory of attitudes and behavioral change Foundational Concept 8: Factors influencing the way we think about ourselves and 20% others 8A – Self identity: self-concept and identity, PSYC 4341 Personality Theories formation of identity 8B – Social thinking: attribution theory, prejudice PSYC 3306 Social Psychology and bias, stereotyping processes 8C – Social interactions: elements of interaction, PSYC 3306 Social Psychology self-presentation, social behavior, discrimination Foundational concept 9: Cultural and Social differences influence well-being 15% 9A – Understanding social structure: theoretical PSYC 3335 Diversity and Social approaches, social institutions, culture Justice 9B – Demographic characteristics and processes: PSYC 3335 Diversity and Social demographic structure of society, shifts and social Justice change Foundational Concept 10: social stratification and access to resources influences 5% 10A – Social inequality: spatial inequality, social PSYC 3310 Health Psychology class, health disparities, healthcare disparities

Percent of PSB Psychology Courses at UT-Tyler Foundations of which cover PSB Foundation areas Behavior content covered* PSYC 1301 Introductory Psychology 40% PSYC 3306 Social Psychology 24% PSYC 3335 Diversity & Social justice 12% PSYC 3325 Learning & Conditioning 10% PSYC 4315 Cognitive Psychology 9% PSYC 3356 Sensation & Perception 9% PSYC 4341 Personality Theories 7% *Because of overlap, these will add to more than 100%. They are an estimate, based on a combination of the % of this exam section reported by MCAT, and the coverage in each course of the described content. These percentages and the resulting order shown above indicate an approximate prioritizing of these courses.

Scientific Inquiry and Reasoning Skills

The B.S. in Psychology requires, as part of its core, the following courses which provide the student considerable preparation in this skill area: Psychological Statistics, Research Methods, Tests and Measurements, and Research Seminar in Psychology,

Psychology Pre-med Degree plan

Core classes, including BIOL 1306/1106, BIOL 1307/1107, MATH 1342, PSYC 1301 42 hrs.

Psychology Core (includes Lear&Cond, Social, Cognitive, Stat, Research Methods) 30 hrs.

UD Psyc electives: Sensation & Perception, Diversity & social justice 6 hrs.

B.S. electives: Gen.Chem (8), Org.Chem (8) 16 hrs.

General electives: Physics (8) 8 hrs.

General UD electives: MicroBiol, Cell Biol, Immunology, Physiology, BioChem 19 hrs.

Total hrs: 121